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Tech Tips

General

Real-world practice

Practice makes perfect. And although you should use a solid rest to sight in your gun, there's no better practice than to shoot from situations you might encounter on a real hunt. You may have to shoot prone, from one knee, from shooting sticks, uphill, downhill and even off-hand. Make sure you're confident in your shooting ability—take an hour or so during your next trip to the range to shoot from a variety of positions.

General Tip

Every gun shoots a little different, so make sure you test each load on paper before your big moment comes.

Safety first when shooting!

Always wear eye and ear protection. Rimfire bullets can travel up to two miles. Treat every rimfire firearm with the same respect you afford your most powerful rifle or handgun.

Match your ammunition to the sport

Choose solid lead or TMJ® bullets for edible game, hollow points for varmints and lead round nose for competition shoots. See the rimfire reference table for usage recommendations.

Clean that gun!

Most rimfire malfunctions can be traced to poor gun maintenance. When you clean the bore, also clean the action. Excess residue or lubricant in the action can cause misfires and feeding problems.

Rimfire is the Perfect Introduction for New Shooters

If you plan on introducing a new hunter or shooter soon, remember to take it slow. Depending on how old and how big a new shooter is, recoil can have a great affect on their learning ability. No one wants to pull the trigger if they're worried about feeling the big "thump" of a deer rifle. One great tool for getting them started is the tried and true 22 Long Rifle caliber; it has virtually no kick and is fun to shoot. It will take out the intimidation factor and make sure that you gain a new shooter for life. And not only is it great for new shooters, it's also a perfect way for advanced shooters to hone their skills.

Rimfire Bullets: What to Use?

Here is a brief looks at a few common rimfire bullet options. Soft Points generally give shooters controlled expansion and are great options for small game. The controlled expansion limits hide and meat damage. Solids are commonly used for target practice. They are very accurate and can also be used on small game. Hollow Points are generally used for varmints and small predators. They offer rapid (sometimes explosive) expansion for quick energy transfer.

Varmint

Sight in most hunting rifles for 50 yards

The bullet rise between the muzzle and 50 yards is very small, so you can use the same sight picture over that range. For open-country varmint shooting, consider a 75 yard sight-in for 22 Long Rifle, and a 100 yard sight-in for the Magnum rimfires.

Small Game

17 HMR GamePoint®

The GamePoint® bullet is designed like many leading big game bullets—its controlled expansion will stop game in its tracks without ruining the parts of the animal you're after. When you're after an animal you intend to keep, the 17 HMR bullet is the right choice.

Competition Ammunition

Try different types of ammunition when looking for accuracy

There are many makes of rimfire firearms with a wide variety of rifling patterns. That makes them very sensitive to the ammunition type. CCI® has plenty of choices to help you in that quest.

Pest Control/Specialty

Pistol Shotshells

Centerfire Pistol Shotshells are ideal for close-range pests. They give shooters a big advantage over a single-projectile. They're available in all the common handgun calibers and make perfect sense when pests or varmints are causing problems.